Rees urges Scarlets to bounce back

A 29-17 Parc y Scarlets defeat to last season's finalist Northampton Saints saw the Welsh region crash out of Europe's premier club competition.

They face Castres Olympique in the final round of Pool One action and the Wales hooker has called on his troops to finish on a high with a place in the Amlin Challenge Cup still up for grabs.

"We have been involved in a lot of close games in the Heineken Cup this season so it is a bitter pill to swallow," said the Scarlets captain.

"We are disappointed because we put ourselves in a good position to make the quarter-finals. What is important now is that we bounce back strongly.

"We still have a chance to get into the Amlin and we have got a chance for silverware in other competitions. We still have a lot of ambitions this season, we have a lot to look forward to.

"It is about bouncing back and making sure we turn up this week in the right frame of mind for a tough trip to Castres.

"It is great if we can make the Amlin, it is another competition and another chance of silverware this season. It also gives our players the chance to play in that intensity again, which can only benefit us.

"We have got to go to Castres and play with a hunger, it is about going out there and fronting up again."

It is the fifth consecutive season that the Scarlets have not qualified for the knockout stages of the Heineken Cup but Rees insists they will learn from the pain to become a better side.

"But we know we are not far away. As a squad we have come a long way in the last couple of years," added the 31-year-old.

"We have got to keep plugging away and the young players will learn from defeats like this and become stronger for it, they will become better players from these experiences."